


Concert for the Ages

by vmreed



Category: Zoey's Extraordinary Playlist (TV)
Genre: Endless fluff, F/M, Fluff, Friends to Lovers, Power Swap, The universe wants them together, and what the universe says goes
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-15
Updated: 2020-05-15
Packaged: 2021-03-03 01:20:59
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,644
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24176539
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/vmreed/pseuds/vmreed
Summary: Max wakes up with Zoey's power. Craziness and romance ensue.
Relationships: Zoey Clarke & Max Richman, Zoey Clarke/Max Richman
Comments: 10
Kudos: 78





	Concert for the Ages

**Author's Note:**

> Special shout out the the discord crew! There'll be many different interpretations of "power swap" coming soon! 
> 
> This story takes place right after episode eight, but before Max moves to the sixth floor. I'm also choosing to ignore Simon's existence.
> 
> The songs in this fic are Under Pressure by Queen, Juke Box Hero by Foreigner, and Is This Love by Whitesnake. I highly recommend you listen while reading! Enjoy!

It was quiet. 

No one sang to her as she walked to work.

No one sang in the lobby.

No one sang in the office.

Something was _very_ wrong.

“What the fuck?”

— — — —

He was on his way to get coffee when it first happened. After countless hours of texting each other Yelp reviews, they had finally picked a new coffee shop: _The Potholder_.

It was a hot summer day in the Bay, and he felt a drop of sweat dribble down his neck as a man in a business suit approached him. 

Suddenly, as if in a trance, the man stopped directly in front of him, staring, like he was trying to work something out.

“Pressure!”

Max almost fell over when the man shouted and jumped forward. For a split second he thought the man was making fun of him for the “presentation” at work yesterday. But instead of laughing it off, the man continued.

_Pushing down on me, pressing down on you, no man ask for._

The man had grabbed him by the shoulders, and a group of women behind him joined in, harmonizing.

_Under Pressure! That burns a building down_

The man turned him to face the window of the shop in front of him and tilted his face towards his reflection, as if showing Max that this pertained to him.

_Splits a family in two_

The man released him and walked away, but an old woman took his place.

_Puts people on streets_

During the instrumental break, Max was finally coherent enough to think about the sheer _ridiculousness_ of this. His brain started to cooperate with him, pointing him in the direction of _dear God, I have Zoey’s superpower_.

With that thought, he sprinted towards SPRQ Point, completely abandoning the idea of coffee.

As he ran, the current singer dropped out, and people he passed while tripping over his feet picked up the tune briefly, like the song was a ball they were passing around.

_It’s the terror of knowing what this world is about, watching some good friends screaming “Let me out!”_

Max cringed at the sound of hundreds of people shouting at once, and a man took the chance to grab him and look directly into his eyes, passion in his voice as he sang the next line.

_Why can’t we give love one more chance?_

“I don’t know!” Max yelled, ripping himself out of the man’s grip. 

The group of around eighty people surrounded him, creeping closer as they all sang as one.

_Because love's such an old-fashioned word and love dares you to care for the people on the edge of the night, and love dares you to change our way of caring about ourselves. This is our last dance, this is our last dance, this is ourselves._

Everyone joined in for the last notes, and he was _so_ over it.

_Under pressure_

About half of the group walked away, and the other half were significantly quieter.

_Under pressure_

More people left, and only about ten people remained to finish the song.

_Pressure._

Only one man was left, raising his hand high and snapping four times before leaving.

(That’s weird, Max knew Under Pressure ends with five-)

He felt his hand produce the last snap of its own volition, his arm in the air as people swarmed around him.

“What the fuck?”

— — — —

When he finally made it to SPRQ Point, he was a mess.

His hair was a greasy blob, he was sweating in all _sorts_ of places, and he was pretty sure his hands were shaking.

People noticed.

Ignoring the pointed stares, he marched straight for Zoey’s desk, not even giving her a chance to speak, “So I have your powers now,” he said. 

“What?” Zoey hissed. A realization seemed to dawn on her, and with her head in her hands she mumbled, “I knew something was wrong.”

Any further conversation was interrupted by Joan’s suggestion that they get to work.

“Listen, you can deal with this for today, right? We can figure this out after work.” Zoey said.

He simply nodded, heading to his desk.

— — — —

Near the end of the workday, Max was interrupted by a familiar drumbeat.

“Zo, it’s happening!” He said excitedly, catching her attention, “And it should be good!”

“What does that mean?” She asked as the guitar picked up.

“It’s _Foreigner_.” He said, feeling that was explanation enough.

He scanned the office, curious to see who would sing _this_ song.

Suddenly, Tobin leapt out of his chair, passionately sang the first verse, his arms making all sorts of weird movements.

_Standing in the rain, with his head hung low, couldn’t get a ticket, it was a sold out show. Heard the roar of the crowd, he could picture the scene, put his ear to the wall, then like a distant scream_

Tobin slid to his knees, holding up his pointer finger.

_He heard one guitar, just blew him away, he saw stars in his eyes, and the very next day_

Tobin continued his unexpected rock song, and Max turned to Zoey, “Is this how often this happens?” He asked.

“What other song did you hear today?” She asked in return.

“An entire neighborhood sang Under Pressure.” He said, exhausted.

At her blank, confused stare, he explained, “Queen. One of the greatest bands of all time?”

She shrugged.

“We really need to educate you in 80’s rock legends.” He said.

During their conversation, Tobin had continued singing, and Max had to split his focus. Now, it seemed Tobin was at the final verse.

_Juke box hero, juke box hero, he’s got stars in his eyes, stars in his eyes._

In a flash, Tobin was back at his desk as if nothing happened.

“Well that was an experience.” He said as Zoey chuckled.

— — — —

Zoey had called them an Uber to her apartment to sort through this mess, and now she stood in front of him with her hands on her hips. 

“So you have my power now?” She asked.

He shrugged from his position on the couch, “I guess. Why do you think it happened?” She was the most knowledgeable on her own power, after all.

“I don’t know. Obviously the universe thinks you need it more than me now. So the question is, what can you do that I can’t?” She asked, her eyebrows furrowed.

“Nothing.” He said quickly.

Her head jerked up, “Max, come on, there’s-”

“No Zoey,” he said earnestly, holding her gaze intensely, “There’s absolutely no way I’m a better choice for this power. You were given it for a reason, but I feel like maybe I’m just borrowing it. You’re too special to have this permanently ripped away from you.”

Max was too focused on Zoey’s tearful, beautiful smile to notice the faint guitar chords in the back of his mind.

_I should have known better than to let you go alone, it’s times like these I can't make it on my own. Wasted days and sleepless nights, and I can’t wait to see you again_

Zoey moved behind the couch, dancing and brushing his shoulder as she moved in front of him again. He was entranced, curious as to where this would go, so much so that the thought of trying to identify the song was far from his mind.

_I find I spend my time waiting on your call, how can I tell you, babe, my back's against the wall? I need you by my side to tell me it's alright, ‘cause I don't think I can take anymore_

As the guitar built to a chorus, Max dared to get his hopes up, praying she was saying what he thought she was saying. She smiled and straddled him for the next line, and _oh yeah his hopes were way up_.

_Is this love that I'm feeling? Is this the love that I've been searching for? Is this love, or am I dreaming? This must be love, 'cause it's really got a hold on me, a hold on me_

Max was sure his face would split in half from how wide his smile was, and he wanted more than anything to sit there and enjoy the performance and tell Zoey how much he loved her.

His brain had other plans.

His body moved mechanically and against his will. He set Zoey next to him, standing and offering his hand to her as _he_ sang the next verse.

_I can't stop the feeling, I've been this way before, but with you I've found the key to open any door, I can feel my love for you growing stronger day by day, and I can't wait to see you again, so I can hold you in my arms_

Zoey took both of his hands in hers and they looked into eachothers’ eyes as they both sang the final chorus.

_Is this love that I'm feeling? Is this the love that I've been searching for? Is this love, or am I dreaming? This must be love, ‘cause it's really got a hold on me, a hold on me._

Zoey moved him back to his original position on the couch, and stood in front of him as she was two minutes ago.

Max was of the opinion that actions spoke louder than words.

He could’ve taken the time to tell her that she sang him a love song, started a conversation about their feelings, any number of things, really.

Instead, he sprang forward, capturing her lips in a kiss.

She froze, but after a few moments, he felt her mouth begin to move against his.

It could have been a minute or an hour for all he knew, but eventually they pulled apart.

“I love you.” He said while his forehead rested against hers.

“I think I love you too.” She whispered.

His heart soared as he claimed her lips again.


End file.
